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jaklumen
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The blues item.
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Jan 7 08:59 UTC 2004 |
As I was saying in another item, I was talking with my father over the
holidays-- we were spending time at their house-- and he was saying
that he wished he could hear more blues on NPR (he really likes blues).
Our area is serviced by Washington State University, I believe, and
the standard programming format for music has been jazz on Saturdays
and maybe Sundays, with classical fare filling the rest of the time.
The days may have deviated slightly, but that's what I remember. I
didn't remember that the jazz programming had covered blues in the
past, but I guess there had been some local listener support for it.
I told him that in Yakima, the vocational skills center (YV-TECH) had
run blues programming-- I think "The Johnny Amigo" show had been one
of them. Little consolation when we live in Kennewick.
Internet radio is really not an option for him, I'm sure. He's a man
who downloads his e-mail and will never need DSL/cable for an Internet
connection. He just doesn't spend that much time on the Internet-- I
don't think he even surfs the Web that much either.
At best, I know his favorite blues artists are Riley B. "B.B." King
and Eric Clapton (I know Clapton was more of a rocker but he seems to
be gravitating more to blues roots in his mellow years, so to speak).
I guess the best way to give my father "the blues" is to buy him a CD.
Anyway, welcome to the blues item. From Delta River to its minglings
in rhythm in what made rock 'n roll-- feel free to enter your musings,
your reflections on your local scene, favorite musicians, etc.
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| 9 responses total. |
mcnally
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response 1 of 9:
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Jan 7 17:59 UTC 2004 |
I went through a blues phase about 10 years ago but haven't kept
current or even delved further into the back catalog than I did
at that time. During that period my favorite of the blues men
I was listening to was Howlin' Wolf.
I'd like to be able to claim that I really enjoy the music of
Robert Johnson but I'd be lying if I said I loved his recordings.
With some artists I can get past the problems caused by extremely
primitive recording but in Johnson's case I never really could.
His songs, however, have done extremely well in the hands of other
artists. Which brings us to the thorny issue of blues covers by
non-blues artists.
Consider the uneven history of the Rolling Stones. Their cover of
Johnson's "Love in Vain" is both one of my favorite Stones tracks
and one of my favorite Robert Johnson covers, and they clearly have
a deep admiration for, and debt to, a long list of blues artists.
But at some level it's still embarrassing to hear them do a song
like "King Bee" and listen to Mick promise to go "buzz awhile" --
it's just so awkward and calculated in a way that the blues shouldn't
be that you start wondering whether there ought to be some unwritten
law forbidding four white English teenagers from pretending they're
black American bluesmen. And if the Stones, with all their talent
and their deep love for the material, can't pull it off without
seeming calculated and awkward, how much worse are the blues-wannabee
efforts of lesser bands?
There's a cringe-inducing scene in the movie "Ghost World" where two
characters, Enid and Seymour, go to see one of Seymour's favorite
classic blues performers at a club, only to find he's opening for an
awful act called "Blueshammer" and that everybody else in the audience
is there to see Blueshammer. There's a ton of good blues coming out
these days if you know where to look but I still get that "Blueshammer"
cringe when I listen to a lot of what passes for blues these days.
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happyboy
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response 2 of 9:
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Jan 7 20:06 UTC 2004 |
if you want something that will creep you out i'd
go with "all night long" by junior kimbrough (rip)
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remmers
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response 3 of 9:
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Jan 9 16:43 UTC 2004 |
Re #1: I remember that scene from "Ghost World" well, especially when
the Steve Buscemi character drops the names of Scott Joplin and Joseph
Lamb to the uncomprehending female Blueshammer fan.
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jaklumen
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response 4 of 9:
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Jan 10 11:26 UTC 2004 |
I think you would, as those would be rag artists :)
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remmers
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response 5 of 9:
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Jan 12 18:07 UTC 2004 |
Of course. "Ghost World" may well be the first commercial fiction
film ever to mention the name of Joseph Lamb.
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jaklumen
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response 6 of 9:
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Jan 13 02:33 UTC 2004 |
I'm curious if the comic book upon which it was based did so too.
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mcnally
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response 7 of 9:
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Jan 13 03:08 UTC 2004 |
Having read other work by Daniel Clowes, I would rate that as highly likely.
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remmers
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response 8 of 9:
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Jan 13 11:45 UTC 2004 |
The film version of "Ghost World" was an extensive rewrite (by Clowes
and the director, Terry Zwigoff) of the comic book. There was no
mention of Joe Lamb. The character played by Steve Buscemi barely
appeared in the original; the movie's art class subplot was new too.
Good as the movie is, I prefer the comic book; it's one of the better
novels I've read in recent years (and I'm uncomfortable using "comic
book" to classify it; "graphic novel" is a better description).
Director Zwigoff seems to be big on music; I've heard that the record
collector played by Buscemi was his idea. Zwigoff's first film, the
documentary "Crumb", featured Joseph Lamb's beautiful "Ragtime
Nightingale" prominently on the soundtrack. (Although, oddly, the
film didn't mention Robert Crumb's musical career or his "Cheap
Suit Serenaders" old-time music group, CD's of which are available
and highly recommended.) Zwigoff's latest, "Bad Santa", has a
lush and varied musical score as well.
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jaklumen
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response 9 of 9:
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Jan 13 13:45 UTC 2004 |
*shrug* I always understood graphic novel to refer to the compilation
book that is often released after the series publications. But that's
a nitpicky thing.
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